


College AU

by Shoulderpads



Series: Edling Week 2018 [1]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, mentions of Lan Fan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-15
Updated: 2018-06-15
Packaged: 2019-05-23 16:19:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14937726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shoulderpads/pseuds/Shoulderpads
Summary: Happy Edling Week everyone! Day 1 that mean Modern AU! So take this modern, college au. I don't have much planned for this one so we'll see where it goes, but I definitely want to give it another chapter or two.





	College AU

**Author's Note:**

> I literally have no title ideas so you are welcome to suggest me some!

"Hey wait up!"

Ed turned around to see Ling running to catch up with him. Coming to a stop, he rested his forehead on Ed's shoulder and panted. 

"Decided to show to class on time for once?" Ed cocked an eyebrow. 

Ling replaced his forehead with his hand and pulled back with a breathless smile, "I ran all the way here..."

Ed believed it. The other boy's disheveled appearance said it all. His ponytail holder looked ready to slip free, his bangs stood up in different directions, and-

"You forgot to wear a shirt."

Ling looked down, and sure enough, he'd shrugged on a jacket, but had nothing on underneath, not that Ed minded seeing his bare chest. He quickly zipped up the front and tucked his face in the high collar, "How embarrassing!"

Ed snorted, "Please, as if you don't jump at every opportunity to show off your chest. 

"I mean, it's not like it's a bad sight."

Ed rolled his eyes, then noticed the light sheen of sweat on Ling, his paler complexion, and the slight sway that made it look like wind could blow him over. 

"You haven't eaten anything today, have you?"

"I ran all the way here," Ling deadpanned. 

Ok, dumb question. Of course Ling rolled out of bed, threw on a jacket and hit the pavement. Ed sighed, swinging his backpack to his front and digging around inside it, "Where's Lan Fan when you need her?" He grumbled. 

"Probably in her history class."

Ed pulled a half squished granola bar out from the bottom of his bag and tossed it at Ling's grabby hands, "You're hopeless." 

Ed continued his way to class with Ling following at his side, "So you gonna come to the usual haunt today?" Ling asked. 

Ed nodded, "Yeah, I'll be late though, I gotta drive Al to his tutoring gig."

"You should really let him learn how to drive."

"When I somehow find the money to afford another car, sure," Ed shoved his hands in his hoodie pocket. 

"I told you, I-"

Ed snapped his index finger up, making Ling crane his neck back to avoid getting stabbed in the chin, "You are not going to be my sugar daddy and buy me a car, Ling Yao."

Ling shrugged, "Suit yourself, but my dad would do it."

"He'd buy you anything to get you to shut up," Ed scowled, "Heaven forbid he actually talk to you."

Ling waved a hand dismissively, "Don't worry about that, just worry how many fries I'm gonna steal off your tray later."

\--

"Hey Ling, you never told me how you and Ed met," Winry inquired taking a sip of her soda and handing it to Paninya. 

"He didn't tell you?" Ling raised a brow. 

"He said he met you in lecture is all."

"Oh. Well then," Ling knitted his fingers together and sat his chin on them, "So it was midterms, and I hadn't studied, so like any other bad student I wanted to know I wasn't alone so I turned to the person next to me to ask if they'd studied, and there's Edward Elric pouring a 5 hour energy into his coffee-"

"Urgh! I told him to stop doing that!" Winry huffed. 

"Anyway, how can you not talk to someone as interesting as that? So after the test I ask 'hey do you wanna get a pizza or something and talk about the test?' And he said 'no, I have to pick up my little brother from school,' so I asked 'what school?' And he told me and I said, 'oh, my half sister goes there,' and he asks me her name so I tell him Mei Chang and he says 'oh my brother knows a Mei Chang. He talks about her often,' so I ask his brother's name and of course he tells me it's Alphonse Elric and I say 'oh Mei talks about him all the time,'" fatigue crossed Ling's face, "All the time," he smiled again, "So I tell him, 'if he looks anything like you, I can certainly see why.'"

Paninya's fist banged on the table a few times, "Ling Yao, you are the smoothest mother fucker alive!"

Ling shrugged, coy, "He was just sputtering so I wrote down my number and told him we could get pizza or coffee or something another time and sure enough come Saturday I get a call from none other than Ed."

"If you're that smooth, you could get anyone, so why him?" Paninya asked. 

"Because he's cute." 

"Who's cute?" Ed asked having finally gotten to the restaurant and sitting down. 

"You are!" Ling smiled. 

"O-oh. Ok," Ed face had started to go red.

Ling laughed, "You're so easy to fluster!"

"Am not!" 

"Then why is your face so red?" 

"Winry!" Ed screeched. 

"I calls em like I sees em," she said plainly, examining her nails. 

"Sleep with one eye open tonight," Ed hissed. 

She leaned forward in her seat, "Wake up with one leg tomorrow morning."

"I'll put gum in your hair."

"I've been thinking of cutting it."

"You're so cute when you're angry," Ling cut in. 

Ed pressed his face into the table. 

"I like your long hair, babe," Paninya pouted. 

Winry combed her fingers through her ponytail, "You do?"

"Of course! I like everything about you!"

"There's no way that's true," Ed mumbled without lifting his head. 

Paninya flicked his ear, "But you'd look good in any hairstyle, Win."

Winry blushed and pecked Paninya's cheek. 

"You gonna order anything, Ed?" Ling asked. 

"No, I have to go to work soon anyway," Ed groaned into the table. 

"Who am I supposed to steal from now?"

Ed snaked his hand from under the table to flip Ling off. Ling just snatched up Ed's hand and kissed the offending finger. 

"Fuck you, that's gay," Ed sat up and stabbed Ling's nose. 

"Well that's good, here I was, worried we were just really close friends the whole time," Ling smirked. 

Ed rolled his eyes. 

"Yknow," Ling changed the subject, "my roommate is going to be done with college after this semester-"

"After what? Like two hundred years, he should've gotten an apartment," Ed interrupted. 

"C'mon, don't be rude, he had a couple gap years is all. So he's graduating, and then I'll be all alone and lonely-"

"You'll get assigned a new roommate-"

"Who should be you-"

"What about Lan Fan?"

"You know she's going to keep staying with Fu."

"She needs to be more independent," Ed muttered. 

"Hey," Ling pushed Ed's shoulder lightly, "stop being rude...and start being my roommate."

"Yeah, but Al-"

"Al's gonna be starting college too next year, he could get his own dorm and meet new people, and you could stay with meeee," Ling put his hands on Ed's. 

"Ling's right, Ed," Winry pointed out, "Al can take care of himself, and you know he's going to get a scholarship for that big brain of his, then you wouldn't have to worry about crashing on me and Granny's or Ms. Izumi's couch" she smiled at him, "Live a little, Ed."

Ed scrubbed a hand over his face, "I'll think about it, ok?"

Ling smiled and pressed a kiss to the corner of Ed's mouth, "Ok!" 

The small group chattered until Ed got up with a groan and grumbled something about his "bastard boss." Ling and the girls studied and gossiped for hours afterwards. Eventually Paninya and Winry went their separate ways with a wave, leaving Ling at the mostly empty table. 

His trademark goofy grin fell then, and he gazed out the window until the restaurant's manager told him to scoot. He walked home slowly. He promised he'd stay over this weekend, so Mei could show him her project for science fair and get his help with the display, but he felt his hand itching to text Lan Fan and ask if he could stay over at her place like when they were kids. 

He entered the quiet house and slipped his shoes off by the door, catching sight of the top of his father's head peeping over the armchair.

"Hey Dad," Ling tried. 

Nothing. 

"Long day at work? Someone try to cheat you out of your money again?"

Nothing still. 

Ling sighed and headed up stairs. He poked his head in Mei's room to find it dark with a Mei sized lump under the bed covers. The girl's cat, Xiao Mei lifted her head from the edge of the bed to look at the new comer. Ling wiggled his fingers at the cat in greeting before closing the door softly and heading to his own. 

The air was stale, and the empty walls made Ling feel like a stranger in his own room. He dropped his bag at the door, hung his jacket on the back of his desk chair, and flopped down on his perfectly folded sheets. 

Ling pulled his phone from his pocket when it buzzed. A text from Ed showed a selfie of him holding his chin and looking into the distance with a face deep in thought. In the background, Ling could spot Al mimicking The Thinker. 

"Still thinking about it. Good night," read the caption. 

Ling's lips twitched up, and he brought the phone to his chest with a sigh. He closed his eyes and drifted to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading!
> 
> Feedback is loved as always!
> 
> Hang out with me at Shoulderpads-mcgee2 on tumblr!


End file.
